Atrium and WakeMed plan a “strategic combination,” including a $2 billion Atrium commitment to WakeMed’s initiatives. Atrium, frequently described as North Carolina’s largest hospital system, is part of Advocate Health, which labels itself the nation’s third-largest nonprofit hospital system. Founded in 1961, WakeMed has three acute-care hospitals, a physical rehabilitation hospital, and a mental health hospital for a total of 973 beds, according to its website. “Our physician practices are home to more than 350 physicians representing nearly every specialty,” according to the site. County commissioners gave both nonprofits a list of over 100 questions about the merger. Thad McDonald, chairman of the board for WakeMed, told the commissioners that the overall tone from the community has been receptive, but that local control, cost, quality of care, transparency, and th…

According to McDonald, Atrium was the only system that replied, noting that WakeMed is “almost a mirror image” of Atrium. “In January of 2024, this concept of a combination was presented to the executive committee of the board,” he said. “Our initial response as an executive committee was much the same as some of you here and members of the community: What? Give up our autonomy? We’ve always been fiercely proud of our independence; however, looking at the future of health care and especially the challenges facing safety net hospitals like ours, we felt it would be irresponsible not to give it vigorous due diligence.” McDonald said the board asked three questions before moving forward: What does the future have in store for safety net hospitals like WakeMed? Given the obstacles identified in the strategy and the strategic plans they’ve already made, along with the acut…